Since finishing off Liu Xiang and winning the naval battle of Liaoluo Bay, Zheng Jun has almost never experienced any decent battles.
Although Zheng Zhilong's military strength is still extremely huge, with more than 100,000 men and thousands of warships, he actually put his swords and guns into storage, put his horses in Nanshan, got a job as a deputy general, and started to make money.
Without external pressure, we can dominate the trade along the southeast coast. Zheng's army is neglected from top to bottom, even the soldiers around the generals. Faced with the sudden war and the extremely powerful enemy, they feel Extremely strenuous.
One tooth general, five personal soldiers, and fourteen ordinary soldiers beat up two red barbarians, one of whom had an injured thigh. As a result, six people were killed and five were seriously injured. This result made Zheng extremely angry. Shao was too embarrassed to speak.
He is like raising a bunch of wine sacks and rice sacks. He knows everything about eating, drinking and having fun. Going into battle to kill the enemy during the war is bullshit. If Zheng Shao's hands had not been cut by Hong Yi's iron sword and the bleeding continued, he would have been so angry that he wanted to rush in and kill him again. .
What a bunch of wimps, there were twenty of them, and they only managed two Red Yi soldiers. They were not invulnerable, but they couldn't take them down with a glare, and Zheng Shao almost wanted to curse.
Looking at the newly entered Hongyi soldiers, they seemed to be motivated to fight and became more and more courageous as they fought. While Zheng Shao was thinking about it, he killed another person and wounded another. Almost by himself, he could compete with more than ten of his own people.
Zheng Shao couldn't think of any good strategy for a while, so he could only yell at his neck and call for more soldiers to deal with this red barbarian soldier whose combat power was comparable to that of a tiger descending from the mountain.
"Woo~wu~wu~"
At this moment, a low conch whistle suddenly came from the night sky. This sound was not a signal from the Zheng army, but an order for the Dutch army to retreat.
It was impossible to carry war drums when participating in a night attack, so the Dutch army followed the local customs and used the conch horn used by the indigenous people. The sound traveled far and could order all ministries to withdraw their troops at the same time.
"Hans! We should go!"
Captain Meyer knew the military order represented by the sound of the conch, and hurriedly called to Hans Bruck, who was fighting nearby. It was not impossible to stay here and continue fighting, but it would be impossible for only the two of them to be left. Possibly against thousands of pirates.
His company has not yet entered the pirates' artillery position, but must retreat immediately. This means that tonight's sneak attack has failed. However, looking at the surrounding battle situation, it should have dealt a considerable blow to the pirates, and it is not completely in vain.
"...Okay! What a pity!"
When he agreed, Hans Brooke killed another sergeant of Zheng with a hammer. Five of his men had already been accounted for, which was equivalent to 500 silver coins.
Although he was unwilling to do so, he felt that these weak guys in front of him were trophies in his pocket, but as a mercenary, he must obey the orders of his superiors. He had killed enough tonight, and he was not injured. It can be seen that Okay, just accept it.
"Haken! Retreat immediately!"
Captain van der Williams had already led troops to kill from a distance. The two companies' fighting areas were relatively close and they could easily merge. When he saw his colleagues who were still fighting, he immediately shouted a reminder.
"Okay! I heard you! Everyone, retreat! No fighting! Return to the castle immediately!"
Captain Haken Meyer immediately shouted loudly. If his order was not heard, the melodious conch trumpet could be heard on the top of the mountain. As long as you hear this sound, you can retreat immediately without getting permission from the headquarters commander. Agree, it doesn't count as running away from the battlefield.
"Damn it!"
The red barbarian soldiers poured in from the area near Zheng Shao like a tide. The scene was very chaotic. It was impossible for him to let his men surround and kill the two bastards in front of him. At this time, no amount of money could do anything. It worked, Zheng Shao could only hate the battlefield.
"...Catch him alive quickly! If you catch a Hongyi, you will be rewarded with two hundred taels of silver!"
The thousand men and horses he led suffered heavy losses in resisting the attack of the Red Yi soldiers. Zheng Shao wanted to know how many enemies he faced. If there were four to five hundred people, it would be okay. Two soldiers fighting one Red Yi soldier would not be considered embarrassing. .
Those red barbarians who were seriously injured on the battlefield and survived for the time being, but who were unable to move and retreat with the large army, became the favorites in the eyes of Sergeant Zheng. The crowd almost swarmed up and surrounded the remaining soldiers.
Only a handful of people chose to continue fighting. The vast majority of Dutch soldiers chose to surrender when they saw that the main force had withdrawn northward and that they had no hope of breaking through.
After a bloody battle, according to Western standards, he has done his duty and is not a coward. Even if he is redeemed by his own side with money, he can be forgiven and understood.
"what is going on?"
On the way back, Captain van der Williams met Captain Victor Ghazi. It was the latter who blew the conch, and when he heard the sound of the trumpet, the former was leading his troops to advance towards the pirates' artillery position.
"We encountered a large number of pirates on the front, at least three to four thousand in number! If we continued to fight, there would be a risk of the entire army being annihilated, so we were forced to retreat! According to the situation we encountered, Zheng Yiguan should have deployed on the mountain There are as many as 10,000 pirates, and such a military force is far beyond what the 500 of us can contend with."
Captain Ghazi also wanted to lead his troops to contain the enemy forces from the front and buy some time for Captain Williams' company to circle back to the pirates' artillery positions from the flanks. However, the situation far exceeded his imagination. There were too many pirates on the mountain.
They killed one group and then attacked another group, and the number was much larger than before. The total strength of the three companies was only 300 people, and half of them were minions with low combat effectiveness.
The officers participating in the battle knew this very well, so it was impossible to bet the hope of victory on these soldiers. As long as the casualties of the soldiers were too many, close to or reaching half, then they could choose to retreat.
Colonel Jansen asked them to come for a night attack within the scope of his ability. He did not want them to die together with Zheng Yiguan's pirates. When the enemy had too many troops and it was really difficult for our own side to win, it was understandable to decide to retreat. .
"Boom boom boom boom..."
The five companies quickly retreated north, and various units of the Zheng Army immediately pursued them. However, they were immediately suppressed by firepower from the Castle of Relanze. Cannons and mortars opened fire one after another, causing hundreds of casualties to the Zheng Army.
During the melee between the two sides, Colonel Jansen did not dare to order artillery fire, which would kill a large number of his own soldiers. After the guards and soldiers knew this, no one would obey his order and lead troops out to attack pirates at night. 27KK
Only at this time can the firepower in the castle exert its due power, killing densely packed enemy soldiers one after another, repelling their offensive, and providing necessary fire cover for the retreat of our own company.
"The enemy had too many troops and we couldn't get close to their artillery positions, but we killed and injured thousands of pirates. These are the prisoners we captured. We can start interrogation immediately and help us learn something about Zheng Yiguan's military strength!"
During the retreat, Captain Ghazi did not forget to grab some "trophies" as gifts to Commander Berg and Colonel Janssen. Although he only captured two pirates, it was still a big gain. Returning to the Castle of Geranze, Then he sent it up.
"You did a great job! I'm so proud of you!"
Colonel Jansen very wisely did not express his dissatisfaction. At this time, it was the wisest choice to praise the subordinate officers who were out fighting, appease their mood, and make them feel relieved.
Six companies of the defenders on the east bank were unable to return, and another four companies were lost in two shellings. These people who went out to fight were equivalent to the general military strength of the Castle of Geranze.
Once five of the twelve company commanders expressed dissatisfaction, the mutiny was not far away. Colonel Janssen did not want to lose due control over his subordinates. In that case, let alone three months, even three weeks would be a daydream. .
Since the pirates' artillery positions were not destroyed, it is useless to say anything this time. It is better to give some verbal praise to show encouragement. Everyone is getting along in terms of face. Now we must unite from top to bottom to resist Zheng Yiguan's pirate army.
"He Bin! Ask them, how many warships and soldiers did Zheng Yiguan bring this time? What is the battle plan? How many soldiers and artillery were deployed on the mountains of Dayu Island? Tell them, if they answer truthfully, they will Get bacon and rice wine, or they’ll be hanged together!”
Now that there are prisoners, Colonel Yangsen now really wants to know Zheng Yiguan's military strength, especially the combat plan, so that he can make targeted deployments. Even if his own strength is not enough, he can still make some preparations in advance.
Captain Ghazi's company captured two prisoners, and the other four companies nine, making a total of eleven. Although these people may not have high positions, they can more or less know some inside information, at least much more than they know.
"Okay! Mr. Colonel!"
He Bin is still working for Berg in the Castle of Geranze, and now he is still the translator. Since he has a better understanding of Zheng Yiguan's situation, and he has mastered the Mandarin and Min languages of the Ming Empire, as well as Dutch and Japanese, You can receive three times your usual salary.
Bolger did not have serious doubts about He Bin because of his identity. After all, this is a guy who has been with the East India Company for many years, and his previous work can be regarded as dedicated. Apart from some brokerage businesses that do not meet the regulations, he is a talent that can be used.
"Whoever is willing to speak first will be the first to enjoy generous treatment. Whoever is willing to tell the truth can taste bacon and wine, and receive timely treatment. Otherwise, the Dutch will give you a hot iron and put a stick on the wound. , it will be hot and steamy, and then sprinkle a handful of salt on it, which will make you so painful that it is worse than death!"
After the Dutch soldiers brought all the prisoners to the prison, He Bin began to use both soft and hard tactics on them. If he could get some valuable information from the prisoners, it would be his credit.
Those who were caught were wounded soldiers with limited mobility. Due to their small stature, they could be carried back on the shoulders by Dutch soldiers who were as strong as cattle. However, being injured during the fighting did not mean that they were willing to die generously.
At this time, the wounded soldiers' will to survive was particularly strong. After being threatened by He Bin, they all began to think about their options. No one wanted to die miserably in Hong Yi's hands. That would be too tragic.
"The first one who is willing to speak will be rewarded with five hundred silver coins, the second one who is willing to speak will be rewarded with four hundred silver coins, and so on, only five people! Mr. Colonel, I have already told them."
He Bin saw the thoughts of these captives from their eyes, and immediately took the second step of the temptation plan, using money to seduce them to talk. No one has trouble with money these days.
"Okay, I'll help you. Take all the prisoners down first and hold them separately! Then interrogate them individually, so that they won't collude in confession. As long as there is any difference, hang them immediately!"
Colonel Jansen watched from the sidelines, and after He Bin had finished speaking, he asked his soldiers to drag all the injured pirates away. It seemed that it was only a matter of time before he got the information about Zheng Yiguan.
"Mr. Colonel, these are the results of our five companies' battle!"
Captain Victor Ghazi presented the last statistics of the battle results. The five companies killed 1,865 pirates and wounded another 3,509 pirates.
According to the reward standard issued by Chief Berg in advance, he must provide at least 186,500 silver coins, otherwise the people below will regard any orders issued by this chief in the future as farts...
"Yeah! I'm going to find Bolger right now!"
This meaning could not be clearer. Captain Ghazi did not say it clearly, but Colonel Jansen also knew it. He was here to ask for money on behalf of hundreds of good people under him. If Bolger denied it and refused to pay, he would only be worried about the consequences. Lanzhe Castle will be lost tomorrow.
Money is the only source of motivation for the garrison officers and soldiers to hold on to the castle. If there is no money, these mercenaries who do not recognize people will go to Zheng Yiguan and serve the pirate leader wholeheartedly.
"……so much?"
Bolger couldn't help but frowned after receiving the battle report. He didn't expect to spend so much money at once. He didn't immediately express his opinion on Colonel Jansen's intention.
"Not many! One soldier killed less than four pirates! I can responsibly say that if you don't agree to pay the bounty in full, the Castle of Geranje won't even be able to survive the next storm! "
When Jansen saw Bolger's stingy expression, he understood what he was thinking, but what he said was still very polite. He did not say, "You may not even be able to see the sun tomorrow." Is this guy the third person? Will it take a day to understand the character of a mercenary?
What do you think we relied on to defeat the Spanish army on our homeland? Advanced tactics? Sophisticated weapons? High morale? Those are secondary, the most important thing is money!
Without money, Prince Maurice's army would not be much better than the locust army under Wallenstein's command, let alone attempt to defeat the massive Spanish Empire's combat forces.
The situation in the Dayuan area has been severely damaged. If you are still extremely stingy at this time, you might as well put all the silver coins in your coffin, but you have to guard against Zheng Yiguan, who has become the winner, digging your grave!
"...Well, I hope the early morning attack can have the desired effect!"
Bolger didn't want to let the castle of Geranje fall into the hands of a group of pirates because of the money. If word spread, he would become the object of ridicule to the entire East India Company and even the entire Dutch people.
These people are able to fight bloody battles with fewer enemies. They are not unheroic and should be rewarded. Especially now, this kind of incentive measures must be used to boost morale, otherwise it will be very questionable how long we can persist in the future...
